The Vampire with the Dragon tattoo
by eJemima
Summary: When Cami and Hayley came to save Klaus, someone else was already there. Who is this mystery woman and why is it the ancestors don't want Klaus to remember her? In the mist of Lucien's terror, a new group of vampires arrive in town. Vampires, claiming to have a long past with the Mikaelsons and who the ancestors will do anything to get rid off. Alternative from 3x18. Klaus/Iris ;)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:**

So, first I'd planned for this to be a one shot, but I'm really not good at making such short stories, so this becomes a multi chapter short story, with 3-4 chapters ;)

This story takes place in and from 3x18, with the first scene from the end of 3x17.

 **Disclaimer:** The title is inspired by Stieg Larsson's "The girl with the dragon tattoo". I haven't read the book or watched the movie, so what happens in this story and that has nothing to do with each other, just thought the title matched :)

TO/TVD characters and setting belongs to Julie Plec and writers.

Iris and Anna are mine :)

Now, here's _'The Vampire with the Dragon tattoo_ ' - Enjoy! :)

* * *

 **Chapter One**

"You know I used to respect them. The ancestors. But the more and more I watched them, the more and more I saw them just using people for their own needs and when they're done, they just toss them aside like they're trash and if you dare to disobey them... If we disobey them, they're gonna shun us. If we disobey them, they're gonna crible is, they're gonna kill us. They gonna be stopped Davina. They got to be stopped! And it looks like it's just gonna be us to do it."

Vincent gave Davina a serious and determined look. The witch gave him a small nod, letting him know she understood what he was saying.

Suddenly there was a loud clapping behind Vincent.

"Well, isn't this just perfect?"

Davina looked up just as Vincent turned back to get a look at their intruder. They were two. A man and a woman, both looking to be in their early twenties, but as this was New Orleans, that never revealed much. The woman had long, straight brown hair and chocolate brown eyes shadowed with dark makeup. The man had short brown hair and dark eyes. They were both pale and had a mystical air about them. It had been the woman who had spoken.

"Who're you and what are you doing here?" Vincent asked and turned towards them completely.

Slim fingers with long black polished nails ran along the counter as the woman slowly walked closer. The man followed her, not saying a word but keeping his eyes on Vincent and Davina with a crooked smirk. A bottle of bourbon flew from its place behind the counter along with two shot glasses, landing in the brunette's hands. Vincent's eyes widened in surprise.

"Vincent Griffith and Davina Claire. Pretty bold of you to going against the ancestors, aren't you?" The woman asked and drowned a shot of bourbon.

"I'm asking you again;" Vincent said impatiently and took a step closer to the two strangers, making sure Davina stayed behind him, "Who are you and what do you want?"

A smile crept on blood red lips.

"It's very simple really. We want you two." The female answered with a crooked smile and pointed a long finger on the two witches.

"What do you want with us?" Vincent wanted to know.

"We want you two to join us. We could use someone with your will and power." The man said downing the other shot glass.

"And who exactly are we?"

The woman and man exchanged looks and the woman nodded before turning her attention to Vincent. She pulled up in her top, revealing a black panther, with shining yellow eyes, decending on her left waist. Vincent blinked in surprise and took a step back.

"The Black Panther." He gasped.

"Ah, you've heard of us?" The woman grinned, "Of cause you have. You've been a slave to your ancestors all your life."

"Who's the Black Panther?" Davina asked, giving Vincent a confused look.

"They're the worst kind of scum to walk this earth." Vincent answered with gritted teeth, not taking his eyes of the two strangers.

"Come now, that's not very nice, is it?" The woman asked and exchanged a look with the man, "You just said that you wanted to go against your ancestors and frankly, if that is the case, we're your best shot."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Davina asked curiously and walked past Vincent, closer to the strangers.

"Well, let's just say-"

"-the ancestors aren't too fond of us." The man finished the others sentence.

"Fond of? That's putting it lightly." The woman grinned, "More like, they despises us because well, we're not under them and we're stronger because we use old magic."

"Old magic?"

"Teachings from the old times. A magic bound in the elements and not ghosts." She explained and held out her hand. In the next moment, without a word having been spoken, flames erupted from her hand, surprising both Davina and Vincent.

"How did you? This isn't..." Vincent mumbled as he looked at the flame with a guarded look.

"Oh I know that this is a magic free bar, but magic still surrounds it and thus..." The woman said as the flame grew bigger in her hand.

"We're pretty good at finding loopholes in the Black Panther. Guess that's one of the reasons why the ancestors despises us. That and the fact that we work along side vampires and werewolves, we're more powerful, drawing power from each other and well, the ancestors never were too thrilled about us heretics..."

"Heretics..." Vincent repeated, taking another step back, pulling Davina with him. The young witch gave him a confused look.

"Both vampire and witch." He explained, never taking his eyes from the two, "They're like parasites. Witches born without magic, only able to steal magic from other witches."

"Or magical objects and since vampires are created from magic, we have a constant source of magic when we're vampires ourselves." The stranger smirked, "Like I said - loopholes."

"Anyhow, we heard you talking about what the ancestors did to Kol and we want to help out. We're here to help out the Mikaelsons anyway."

"You know Kol?" Davina asked curiously. The brunette gave her a crooked smirk.

"Of cause I know Kol." She said, "The Mikaelsons and the Black Panther go way back and our leader go even further back with them. 900 years in fact. The three Mikaelson brothers are some of my favourite people - at least they used to be."

"If that's the case, how come we've never heard about you?" Davina wanted to know, "Kol has never mentioned you."

"Well, that's a rather complicated story sweetie, and it's not for me to tell. Just know that we're here to help Kol and the rest of the Mikaelsons. Whatever the ancestors did to Kol, we can undo it. Oh, I'm Anna by the way and this is my coven brother Malakai," The woman introduced, "it's nice to make your acquaintance Vincent Griffith and Davina Claire."

(…)

Klaus glared up at Aurora hatefully, as she was about to stake herself, when they heard the sound of the elevator from the hallway. Aurora crooked a smirk.

"Well, it appears we have company." She said cheerful and went to open the door. Klaus tensed, expecting the worst of the new arrival; however, he was surprised when the unannounced visitor was someone he'd never seen before. The hybrid's heart jumped, as he saw red hair, close fitted pants and lose black top on a female figure, leaning against the doorframe. He spotted a full and detailed Black Panther tattooed descending from her left upper arm. It had a fierce look in red eyes, giving you a feeling that it was able to see right through you, even at a distance. Klaus didn't recognize the new arrival and yet, there was something in him that reacted to the mere sight of her.

"Iris?" Aurora asked perplexed, clearly expecting someone else, behind the door, "What are you doing here, in New Orleans of all places?"

"What?" The stranger, referred to as Iris, huffed and crossed her bare arms, "A woman can't visit her old friends?" She asked defiantly, "Since both you and Lucien, is in this godforsaken city for some reason, and it's rare for the two of you to be at the same place and time, I thought I'd graph the opportunity to pay two of my oldest friends a surprise visit." She explained with a shrug, "But seriously Aurora, New Orleans? What's so bloody special about this place?" The stranger asked sounding unimpressed. Aurora took a step back.

"Come on in and I'll show you." She said and walked back towards the chained hybrid. As Aurora turned her back to the stranger, Klaus noticed a small smirk creeping across the stranger's lips. She glanced around at the doorframe, before taking a careful step into the penthouse. Turquoise eyes scanned the place, as she stopped in her tracks, only for a moment. Her eyes landed on Klaus and for the few seconds their eyes locked, the hybrid saw something change in hers. For a moment, something changed in the turquoise, however, before Klaus could identify the change, it was gone and the stranger followed Aurora further into the house. This was the first thing that made Klaus suspicious of the stranger.

"Oh you were in the middle of something with another guest?" Iris asked and stopped up as she faked surprise, seeing Klaus there, "I knew you had a kinky side, but damn girl... Is this, by any chance a bad time? Am I interrupting something?" She hinted and crooked an eyebrow at Aurora, taking a step back towards the door.

Aurora let out a laugh and shook her head.

"No, it's not like that. Not anymore." She answered and pulled out the stake she had found earlier, "Iris, may I present to you - Niklaus Mikaelson."

Iris' eyes widened in surprise, as she looked between Klaus and Aurora.

"No way!" She shrieked suddenly, causing Klaus stir a little in his chains, " _The_ Niklaus Mikaelson?!"

Aurora gave her a short nod and a proud smirk, as she played with the stake in her hands.

"Oh yes. All the Mikaelsons reside in New Orleans these days, that's what's special about this city." Aurora elaborated. The stranger took another look between the two.

"All of them?" She asked amazed as if she had a hard time believing what she was hearing. Aurora nodded again and walked closer to Klaus.

"Well, almost all of them." The vampire corrected herself with a half smirk, "I'm afraid that Finn has recently kicked the bucket for good and our dear Rebekah is MIA, but the remaining four, including a long lost witch sister, is here and ready to be ended in a glorious way. Isn't that right, my love?" Aurora finished and sent Klaus a gleeful grin. The hybrid returned the grin with a hateful glare. Iris crooked a smirk and moved towards the chained original. She kneeled down in front of him and gave him a curious look. Their eyes met again and Klaus found himself speechless. Something about the turquoise eyes drew him in. Something he couldn't explain or even begin to understand.

"I can't believe it." Iris said in a whisper, "After everything I've heard about the infamous and feared Klaus Mikaelson, I finally get to see him for real and this is it?" She sounded somewhat disappointed.

The stranger reached out and touched his face lightly, turquoise eyes wide in wonder. The touch was cold, sending electric shivers all through Klaus' body and he fought, for it not to affect him visibly. He wanted to pull away, to thwart the hand away like an unwanted annoyance, but found himself unable to do so and not because of his restrained state.

"Yeah, I'm afraid he isn't that impressive." Aurora admitted, faking a pout, as she gave Klaus a look. The hands moved, one holding on to the stick, between the hybrids head and chained hand, the other moved from Klaus' face, down his throat, neck and stopped on his chest. The lingering touch turned warm and the woman's lips grew into a gentle smile as Klaus' felt his heart quicken involuntary by her touch. Turquoise eyes looked up from the pale hand on his chest.

"Ah, but it's such a shame though." Iris said with a long sigh, "Killing him is such a waste, when he's so handsome, isn't it?"

"Don't be fooled by his charms, Iris." Aurora said and sent Klaus a glare. "He will whisper you sweet nothings one moment and then put you behind bricks for eternity the next. You can't trust him." Iris gave Klaus a secretive grin, before she looked away and glanced back at the stake in Aurora's hand.

"What's the stake about?" She asked curiously nodding toward the stake in the other redhead's hand, "I thought you couldn't kill an original with a normal stake."

"You can't." Aurora said with a shrug and flipped the stake once in her hand, "But you can still make it hurt and the stake isn't for Nik, but for me."

"You?" Iris asked and rose to her feet, facing the other vampire.

"Lucien created a serum that will make one stronger, with a bite that can kill an original, but for the serum to take effect, one has to die and be reborn." Aurora explained eyes fixed on the stake before her.

Iris rose a doubtful brow and frowned.

"So you're planning to kill yourself?" She concluded, not hiding her scepticism of the idea.

"And be reborn to something stronger." Aurora said her eyes wide and voice slightly manic, "I'll finally be able to have my revenge for what Nik and his siblings did to me and my brother."

Klaus and Iris exchanged a look, before turning, their full attention to Aurora, watching her closely as the redheaded vampire, slowly guided the stake in front of her.

"You're crazy." Iris mumbled and shook her head, but kept her eyes on Aurora. The redhead merely gave her friend a crooked grin.

"See you on the other side." She said cheerfully before plunging the stake into her heart. The vampire let out a small groan and gave Klaus a little smile as the stake pierced her heart.

The hybrid watched, somewhat horrified, as Aurora dropped to the floor lifeless - for now. He knew what was coming when she woke up. He knew what she would be capable of. The other woman sighed, seemingly unaffected by what had just happened and walked up to the fallen vampire. She gave Aurora a few small kicks, making sure she was out before turning back towards Klaus.

"She'll be out for a while." Iris informed him nonchalantly and walked past the chained hybrid to the drawer and mirror near the front door. Klaus' eyes widened, as he saw the woman's back.

Her black top seemed to be in leather, covering her front, however the back was naked with nothing but cords of leather going from one side to the other, exposing the tattoo covering her back.

A black western dragon dug its claws into her shoulder blades, drawing blood. It's long and spiked tail twisted around her lower waist. Wings were unfolded, ready for flight and the dragon's head was turned, revealing two intense, almost glaring red eyes, as grey smoke came from it's nostrils. Klaus couldn't remember ever having seen anything like it, in his long life. Beside his own and Hayley's, that kind of body decorations weren't something he'd seen much of. However, he had a feeling that both the panther and dragon had a significant meaning. A meaning he somehow should know. The woman, called Iris, pulled something out, from behind the mirror.

"You knew about the camera?" Klaus asked and raised a brow, wondering what she was doing with it. He spotted a crooked smirk, through her reflexion in the mirror.

"Of cause I knew about the camera." She answered as if it should have been obvious.

"Just like I know about the witch dagger, stakes and countless other weapons in this room. You noticed me scanning the room when I entered, did you not?" She asked and looked into the mirror back at Klaus. The hybrid gave her a small nod in response.

"You're quite observant." He complimented her, trying not to sound too impressed. Iris shrugged and put a last hand on the camera, before putting it back behind the mirror.

"What can I say? I had a good teacher or rather teachers, in plural." She told him and turned around, leaning against the drawer, "Besides, I've been friends with Lucien for a long time. I know how he thinks."

They both fell quiet for a while, as they watched each other. Klaus couldn't seem to figure her out. She said one thing but the things she did contradicted those words. Klaus didn't like not being able to see through someone.

"What do you want?" He asked bluntly, tired of beating around the bush and just wanting some answers.

"What makes you think I want something?" Iris asked him in return, acting ignorant and giving him a perfect poker look. Klaus huffed.

"I'm a thousand year old hybrid. I may be subdued for now, but I'm not stupid." He grunted, glancing up at the stranger. The redhead nodded thoughtful, then crooked a small smirk.

"That may be so, but your memory certainly isn't what it has been. Is it, old man?" She asked and pushed herself from the drawer, walking back to the chained hybrid. Klaus had a feeling that there was something of deeper meaning behind stranger's words, but had no idea what. The hybrid groaned annoyed, getting tired of playing games.

"What's that's supposed to mean? Who are you?" Klaus wanted to know, losing his patience with the stranger and wanting to get out of the chains before Aurora woke. Bright turquoise eyes caught his and he froze. Something in those deep green and blue orbs awoke a new sensation inside him, making his heart speed up in excited anticipation. There was something familiar about it all, but Klaus could point it out.

"The name's Iris Mikaelson." She told him with a resigned sigh and sat down in front of him. Klaus blinked confused, not understanding what she saying.

"Do I know you?" He blurted out before he realized what he was asking. Something about the stranger tugged at him and he felt like he was missing out on something important.

He didn't like it.

Klaus spotted a quick sad smile on the stranger.

"16th of November 1116, Germany." She began and pulled her arms around her legs, resting her chin on her knees, "You saved me from an angry servant and heavy armoured soldiers. You brought me with you to your siblings. I was 16 and had no one. Belonged with no one. For four years, I lived with you, Elijah, Kol and Rebekah, where you all taught me everything you knew. Good observation skills for one." She said and blinked, referring to her earlier comment, "In 1120, something happened and you guys adopted me into your family giving me the Mikaelson name. During the same time we realized our feelings for each other - you and me." Iris let out a small laugh, "Kol used to tease us, calling us husband and wife, but never the less, we did make a promise to each other that year. Forever and beyond." She stopped for a moment and took in a shaky breath before she continued, "We were happy for a while. All five of us, as we lived together like a real family. However, in 1126, Mikael found us and killed me. By chance, I got some of your blood into my system and woke up later in a shallow grave, as a newborn vampire and alone. I didn't see any of you again, until I finally found you in Bulgaria in 1493." She finished and looked up at him expectant. The hybrid stared at her blankly.

"Why?" He asked, his throat painfully dry, "If what you're telling me is true, then how come I don't remember any of it?"

Iris crooked her head and gave him a gentle smile.

"You guys wanted to keep me safe." She told him as if it explained everything.

Klaus groaned.

It didn't.

He was about to demand some elaboration, when Aurora stirred awake in her position on the floor behind Iris.

"Well, well look who's finally waking up." Iris said and rose from her sitting position. She walked to a disgruntled Aurora and gave her small slaps on the cheek, to wake her up more quickly.

The redhead was on her feet in the next second, wide-awake and aware, causing Iris to take a step back in surprise.

"Wow, this feeling of power is truly amazing!" She exclaimed excitedly and looked down at her hands as she opened and closed them.

Klaus knew, he should be keeping a close eye on Aurora and come up with a plan, considering she now had the ability to actually end him. However, he couldn't help thinking about what the woman, Iris, had told him.

She was a vampire. Klaus had figured that much from the beginning, but as it turned out, she was rather old and held a certain power as well.

900 years, which meant she was around that same age as Aya had been. They were from the same time.

Thinking back on the years she had mentioned, the early 12th century, there was an awful lot of holes in his memory. After having killed the five and being cursed from it, followed 50 years of torment. However, for some reason he didn't remember the first ten years or so, to be as bad as the rest. Klaus remembered Mikael finding them in 1120. He remembered being faced with his stepfather and being on the verge of dying, but didn't remember how he had survived.

The early 12th century weren't the only holes in his memory. Klaus felt slight panic, as he realized there were several periods in his long life, which had major black holes in his memory. Some of these periods spanned over several decades.

There was a large part of his long life he didn't remember.

How come he had never noticed that?

In his talks with Cami, he had told her about his life from A to Z, but never realized something was missing?

Why now?

Klaus cried out, as a sudden pain cut through his head, like a thousand needles.

He had gotten countless aneurysm from angry witches over time. They had made his blood boil and caused him all sorts of psychical pain, but this wasn't like anything he'd experienced before. The pain filling his head was excruciating, as if his brain was on fire, while stabbed all at the same time. There was no doubt in his tortured mind, that this as well, was magic inflicted and was only confirmed, when Klaus heard a whisper through the chaos of the pain.

 _You will never remember. It is all lost. Lost forever and beyond..._

* * *

 **A/N:** So... how did you like it? Was it believable? Good? Bad?


	2. Ready or not, here we come

**A/N:** First off, thank you for all your reviews, favourites and follows! It means a lot that so many is interested in this story and characters!

WIthout further ado - here's chapter two!

* * *

 _Ready or not, here we come..._

"So, what is he like?" The youngster asked as they leaned against the black range rover. They were keeping a close eye on the comings and goings in the building as they waited. She turned her attention from the main entrance of the building to look at her pupil. He was still young, but not as young as he seemed to be. She had found him in New York a year ago, shortly after he had turned and was still getting used to his combined vampire and witch state but he was a quick and willing learner. He had quickly become one of her favourite apprentices and showed great potential on his first official trip, carrying the mark.

"What is who like?" Anna asked him, despite knowing who he meant. He gave her a look, letting her know that he knew, she knew. The older one laughed and turned her attention back to the building, looking up. She could feel the both of them. She knew exactly where they were.

"Well, that depends who you are, I guess." She said, trying to answer the question, the best she could, "and whether or not he remembers of cause. He's a bit... complicated." She smiled to herself and shook her head, "But once he trusts you, he's one of the best and most loyal friends you could ever have. He's very passionate about those he cares about. He's proud, powerful, stubborn and a brilliant strategist. Then he's a strict, but good teacher and leader." She told him with a crooked smile. Her young pupil nodded absently, putting his hands in his pocket.

"My family and coven talked a lot about him and his siblings." He said, "They were one of those few, my family didn't dare stand up against, despite having this need to punish and exile 'abominations'."

"Ah yes, the Gemini coven was an annoyingly stubborn bunch." Anna agreed with a nod.

"I remember overhearing them complaining about him, when I was a kid and thought he sounded way cool." The younger continued with a smile on his lips, as he got lost in a memory. The older watched him for a while. Anna knew his story. She knew how his family and coven had treated him, as an outsider unable to do magic by himself. She knew he was a merciless killer of those who betrayed and went against him. Like that, he was no different from herself and their people. He wasn't much different than their leaders and so fit in perfectly. The only thing he needed was to learn that among everything, there was some people he could actually trust and who cared about him. This was Anna's main mission.

Anna herself had never felt the pain of being betrayed and cast out by one's own family. The only family she knew of was Iris and the Panthers. The vampire had found her in a war stricken village, when she had been no more than five winters. They had only learned about Anna's magic after becoming a vampire in the late 12th century.

Anna grinned and ruffled the younger's hair, messing up his slightly spiked style.

"Aw, is my little Kai fangirling over meeting the original hybrid?" She purred teasingly, "Don't tell me that's the only reason you joined us?"

Kai pushed Anna away and gave her a sour look.

"Of cause it is." He said, putting on a serious look, "Why else would I join a bunch of losers like you?"

Anna kept her eyes on him, a steady grin never wavering. Kai returned the look stubbornly for a long moment, before breaking into a grin and shook his head.

"Still can't win against you." He mumbled and turned his attention back to the building.

"Of cause you can't!" Anna exclaimed with a laugh, "It's still way too early for the apprentice to outsmart his master. But it can happen you just have to work hard enough." She said and blinked at him with a crooked smile. Kai smiled back and nodded understanding.

The two feel quiet for a while, until Anna suddenly stood up straight and alert. Kai gave her a confused look.

"What is it?" He asked, feeling a little concerned by the sudden guarded state of his mentor. Anna kept her eyes locked towards the top of the building.

"Shut up, close your eyes and concentrate." She hissed strictly, putting on her teacher voice. Kai did as he was told and closed his eyes.

At first, there was nothing, but as he stretched out all his senses and magic, he felt it. Then he heard it.

The scream. The whisper. The magic.

He opened his eyes and looked at Anna who met his eyes immediately.

"The ancestors." Kai said, understanding was what happening. Anna nodded.

"Trouble." She added and pushed herself from the car, "Come on."

The two heretics crossed the street and went into the building they had been watching, ready to wage war against their oldest enemy.

(...)

Iris and Aurora both froze when they heard Klaus' scream. They looked back at him, surprised by the sudden outburst. The hybrid was still chained, though bowed forward on his knees in obvious pain.

Aurora walked across the room, towards Klaus, not taking her eyes off him.

"I don't know what's going on but no one, besides me, is allowed to inflict pain on and kill Nik." She hissed angrily. A gloved hand stopped Aurora a meter from the tied up hybrid.

"Yeah sorry _girlfriend_ , but that ain't happening."

Aurora looked up at the other woman surprise evident in her face.

"What are you talking about, Iris?" Aurora asked with a small laugh, "This is Niklaus! We can finally end it!"

Iris glanced at the pained Klaus then smirked, as she looked back at the other redhead.

"Oh, I know very well that it's Nik." She said and pulled out a small vial from her pocket, "Thing is Aurora, I haven't been completely honest with you, Tristan and Lucien all these years. I haven't been completely honest about the Black Panther and where our loyalties lies..." She said and pushed Aurora back a little, "You see, since the very beginning, the Black Panther and I have sworn loyalty to only one man. That man is the one you plan on killing. So you see, _friend_ , I can't really let you do that."

Klaus heard the words through his pain-hazed mind and looked up at the two women standing only a few metres from him. The words surprised him, even if it should have been obvious to him by now. He looked from one redhead to the other. Aurora glanced at Klaus and let out a nervous laugh.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Iris crooked her head, watching Aurora for a silent moment before answering.

"Have you ever heard the saying; keep your friends close, but your enemies closer?" She asked casually, "The Black Panther has pretended to be friends and allies with Strix and Kingmaker for centuries, when really, we were just keeping a close eye on you. This means that the thing Lucien has been cooking up," She paused and pulled the vial up for Aurora to see, "we found a way past that. Basically, I can kill you and I plan on doing so."

Aurora's eyes widened for a moment, before her eyes turned bright red and she let out a low growl. Iris was on her back the next second with Aurora sitting atop of her, teeth barred and with an expression ready to kill. The other redhead blinked surprised at first, but quickly caught her bearings.

"Wow, that serum has made you stronger," Iris admitted impressed by the strength of the hand closing around her throat, "but that kind of magic can really only do so much."

Iris graphed the arm holding her back and locked eyes with Aurora. A wicked grin grew across her lips as she heard a tell tail sound from a quickly approaching elevator.

"Real power is build up from within with a lot of hard work and dedication." She told the other vampire as she slowly pushed Aurora's hand away, "It is strengthened by friends and family, loyal to you. Guess who taught me that." She added just as the red eyes of the panther on her arm lit up. Aurora hissed angrily.

"I never took you for a fool, believing in such romantic sentiments." She sneered putting in more power to subdue Iris. The older redhead managed to hold the other down, causing a gleeful smirk to grace her lips.

"You say that now, but you've never known the secret behind the power of the Black Panther." Iris whispered, as turquoise eyes flashed red, yellow, blue and green before they went back to their original colour.

"Ready or not, you're about to get a first-hand taste..." Iris added, her grin growing, "Boom."

With a sudden blast, the front door burst open and a shockwave shot through the room, throwing both Aurora, Klaus and Iris to the floor. "Try a little less force next time Kai." A female voice, coming from the hall, scolded, "If they went out of the window, we'd have to go all the way back down."

Iris let out a small laugh and shook her head.

"Don't be too hard on him, Anna." Iris shouted and got up from the floor, "The boy is still learning about his powers."

"That's coming from you?" Came the reply, followed by a small huff.

Klaus looked up, finally feeling the pain in his head subside with the two new arrivals.

One of them, a brunette female, lit up in excitement by the sight of him.

"Nik!" She shrieked happily and made ready to run to him, but stopped herself when she saw Aurora getting up from the floor with a menacing look in her eyes.

"Aurora, hi." She said awkwardly, "It's been a while how are you doing? You look different. Did you get a new haircut?"

"Cut the polite chit chat Anna." Aurora snarled angrily, "I know about you, you treacherous wench!"

Anna made a face and glanced between Klaus and Iris. Iris got up from the floor slowly, eyes locking with Anna, giving her a small nod.

"Well, okay." Anna said, understanding and taking a step back, "That sure saves us a lot of explaining then."

A low sneer escaped Aurora, seconds before she charged for Iris, attacking from behind.

"Iris! Down!" The young man with the brunette shouted and just as Iris ducked he shot a wave of invisible force, throwing Aurora back into the wall.

"See, that's more like it." Anna said and patted the young man's shoulder, "Good job Kai."

Despite the rough hit, Aurora quickly flashed back on her feet and charged forward again, teeth barred and ready to bite.

Iris turned quickly, taking out the small vial and syringe. In a split second, she had pulled the liquid. The moment Aurora reached her, Iris turned and slammed the needle into the other vampire's neck.

The two women stepped away from each other, both panting heavily as they kept close eyes on each other. Anna and Kai ran to Iris as she dropped to the floor as Aurora stumbled backwards, colliding with the coffee table.

Kai's eyes widened as they landed on the sizzling bite mark on Iris' arm. He looked up as Aurora laughed out loud with glee.

"Foolish girl!" She exclaimed between the laughs, "Did you really think you could defeat me? Me?! I'm way stronger than you could ever imagine!"

Iris glared at the gloating vampire, as she felt the venom course through her arm, spreading to the rest of her body, painfully destroying everything in it's wake. She had expected this much, when she went to save Klaus and facing Aurora. Iris had been bitten by werewolves and injected with their venom on numerous occasions, however, this was very different. She had been prepared for it but hadn't expected it to be this painful. Iris cursed under her breath, hating the crazy redhead more by the second.

"You're underestimating us." Iris panted, feeling cold sweat on feverish skin, "Underestimating the Black Panther shows how little you know us and it will be the last thing you do, Aurora." She added and got up, with a little help from Anna and Kai. Anna crooked her head as she watched Aurora getting up as well. She glared at the three, as she tried away a little blood from the corner of her mouth. Her elegant red hair was unruly and messy. Her face twisted in pure rage.

"The thing about magic, is that there's always a counter spell or potion. Nature wouldn't have it otherwise." Anna said and they slowly moved closer to Aurora, "Some magic is very old and complicated and finding it's counter isn't easy, but it's not impossible either."

Iris lifted her head, standing up straight and ignored the burning sensation in her body. She wouldn't let anything take away the satisfaction of what was happening next, deadly venom be damned.

"The moment I learned what Lucien was up to, with his Kingmaker, I had my coven of centuries old heretics and witches come up with something." Iris said and held up the empty syringe, "It was an extradition of a cure for immortality, which will neutralize any immortality magic in you, meaning your thousand years will catch up to you in a matter of minutes. You'll die from old age and," A wicked grin spread across her lips, "I had my heretics put in a little extra, so you'll be able to feel every agonizing second, as every cell in your body dries out, crumbles and dies."

Aurora took a nervous step back and stumbled but quickly regained balance. She blinked a few times as if she let the words sink in. Then she grinned.

"I'm sorry darlings," She said giggling, "But whatever you were hoping would happen, didn't. I've never felt better in my life!"

Kai crooked a grin and held out his hand towards her.

"Activation spell." He said nonchalantly and mumbled a few inaudible words.

The words were followed by an agonising scream, as Aurora collapsed on the floor, clenching her stomach desperately. Seconds later the first changes were noticeable.

Red hair turned grey to white and lost it's volume, falling off.

Perfect pale skin wrinkled and dried as pigments appeared.

Limps shrank into skin and bones.

Fragile.

Weak.

Iris took the last few steps to the screaming Aurora. She graphed the woman by her throat and held her up in one arm.

"How is human life treating you, dear Aurora?" Iris sneered, as turquoise eyes turned cold, "I've seen this happen to a few vampires before. Is it as painful as it looks?" Iris asked and crooked her head as she noticed Aurora's nose become more pointed and her eyes turning dull and sunken. Aurora didn't answer, but managed to let out a painful groan in response.

"Good." Iris growled coldly, "When someone dare to hurt my family and the man I love, I get a little moody, I lose any sense compassion and my sadistic side comes into show."

Aurora gasped, as Iris tightened the grip around her throat, digging black nails into paper- thin skin. Lukewarm, dark blood tickled out, painting the vampires fingers. Iris leaned into Aurora's ear.

"Goodbye Aurora." She hissed in a whisper before dropping the woman on the floor.

* * *

 **A/N:**

I love writing Iris and her fellow Panthers... *grin*

For you who have watched/ are watching Vampire Diaries - Yes, it is _that_ Malakai Parker. Surprise! :D Kai is my second favourite villain of the TVD/TO universe and he's supposed 'death', didn't make any sense, if you ask me, so I decided he isn't dead, but faked it and joined the Black Panther shortly after. He's a very powerful and useful asset to the group, but he's still very young and has a lot to learn, so he's come under the 'safe' guidance of Anna. Safe, LOL... ;P

A little more of the heretics, as requested and there will be more to come ;) Anna and her coven likes to show off their power. They're a little narcissistic like that ;)

Even though I've never been a klami shipper, I thought it a little shame that she had to die. Vampire Cami did have potential and I feel really bad for Klaus, that he had to go through something like that - again. Why couldn't they just realize they weren't a good match, break up and go their separate ways, like normal people? So yeah, Cami doesn't die in this, because it would serve no purpose to the plot. Klaus get's over Cami in another way ;) Can't promise it'll be as easy for Cami though...

So... Is this the end for Aurora? What's next and what about that bite Iris got and what's happening to Klaus?

Stay tuned for the next chapter to get answers ;)


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** So here's finally the next chapter! Hope you'll enjoy it ;)

One of the many inspirations for this chapter was from Madi Diaz' "Ashes', which sets the mood for this chapter pretty good, so check it out ;)

Now, enjoy!

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

 _23rd of March, 1127_

 _It's been six months and every day, it gets worse still. We all still miss her, still grieve her, but none of us ever imagined how losing her would affect Niklaus. In our 130 years, we've never seen him like this. The curse is taking it's tool on him, making him more mad than sane. I never knew how bad it could get. She had always been there, somehow able to soothe him, keeping him sane. Without her, it's clear that he's losing himself. Every day is filled with careless torture and murder of the innocent. It's like he takes immense pleasure in others pain. So much blood._

 _The other day I found him in the bath, dead, mutilated bodies laying around him in pools of blood. Niklaus himself were soaking in the bathtub. Water red from the blood. He was grinning at me like a mad-man and greeting me cheerfully as if nothing was wrong._

 **(…)**

Klaus was brought out of the daze by a distant mumbling of foreign words that slowly became louder and clearer. He forced his eyes open, hissing as the light caused his tortured mind pain. The image was blurry at first and he fought to make any sense of it focusing. He saw a brown haired figure sitting in front of him and as the image slowly cleared up, he recognized the figure to be the brown haired woman, by the name of Anna, who had barged in a minute ago or had it been longer? Klaus found that he had no sense of how long time had passed or what time it was all together. Chocolate brown eyes met his and the mumbling stopped.

"Here." The woman said and pulled a leather strap over his head, "As long as you wear this, the ancestors won't be able to hurt you. I'm afraid I can't do anything about the memory at this moment, but I'll find a way, I promise."

Klaus looked down at his chest as he felt a small weight around his neck. A small black stone rested on his chest, hanging from the leather strap. The lingering pain in his head disappeared completely and the fuzziness cleared up completely. He didn't know how, but whatever stone it was, it had helped.

"Thanks..." The hybrid mumbled, earning a smile from the brunette.

"You're welcome Nik." She replied with a small nod, "Now, let's get these chains off you, shall we?"

Klaus caressed his sore wrists as he finally got up from the floor. He may be an immortal hybrid, but hours in the same position like that, still took a tool on his body, however short it was. He watched the remains of Aurora continuing to crumble as Iris walked up to him, a blood bag in hand. The woman by the name of Anna and the young man had left the apartment a minute earlier, saying something about waiting by the car, leaving Klaus alone with the mysterious red head. The original took the blood bag mumbling a small thank you and sighed relieved, as he tasted the thick liquid caressing his taste buds and moisturizing his sore throat.

The moment Klaus felt some of his energy return from the nourishing blood, he threw the empty blood bag and flashed forward, graphing Iris. He threw her against the nearest wall pinned her there.

"Who are you?!" He roared, eyes flashing yellow for a moment as he glared at her. Iris didn't flinch under his stare but returned the action with a calm look.

"I told you already." She said him quietly and crooked her head as she watched him close. Klaus growled and slammed his fist into the wall next to her head. He expected some sort of reaction from her, a flinch, a twitch, showing some kind fear, anger or guard but found none as he looked into bright turquoise eyes. They fell silent as the hybrid moved a little closer. Threatening, intimidating the younger vampire. The redhead merely stared back at him unfazed by any of his attempts. She was challenging him. Daring him. Klaus knew this. He just didn't know to what. After a long minute, the woman sighed and broke their eye contact looking down.

"I'm not lying." She said resigned, as if she knew what he had been thinking, "I'll show you." She insisted and took both his hands in hers and led them to temples, "You may not remember me, but I remember you. I remember every little thing about us and every day we spend together. Take a look."

 ** _Somewhere in North East Europe_**

 _The distant screams rang in her ears, dragging her out of the dark oblivion. She heard banging on the doors, shouts, screams, rattling of iron instruments, drills, liquid dripping, the subtle mumbling of the facility workers._

 _Dull turquoise eyes rolled into place, as eyelashes blinked open._

 _Pitch black darkness._

 _Opening her eyes made no difference from her closed, however she soon felt the reality of her surroundings._

 _Cold stone floor._

 _Her head fell back and hit the wall behind her as an icy cold draft flew through the room, hitting naked skin mercilessly._

 _Shivering._

 _She was shivering. Her entire body shook uncontrollably in a way she hadn't felt for centuries. Her heart beat irregularly. Going fast, slow, skipping beats and stopping for a second or two. It was hard to breathe. Her airways tightened and twisted._

 _She coughed, trying to ease her breathing but only found a new pain in her throat and chest, trickered and made worse by every cough._

 _Her skin itched, stung and burned, touching it she felt sticky liquid, but couldn't see anything in the darkness._

 _A nauseating sweet and sour smell hung in the air around her. Blood, sour almonds and vervain. It was suffocating and every breath she took scorched her throat painfully._

 _Her stomach twisted angrily, screaming for food or some kind of relief as the hunger dug deeper._

 _She tried to focus through it all. Trying to figure out where she was and what was going on. However, no thought stayed for long. Her mind was fuzzy. Every memory was blurry and fleeting and slipped away the moment she caught it._

 _There was a sudden loud bang in front of her._

 _"You still alive in there?!" A deep male voice asked in a language, not her own, but one she knew all too well, with words that lit up an intense anger and hate inside her. The question was followed by a blinding white light appearing just above her. Eyes squinted on their own against the light and found a dark figure in the midst of it all._

 _"Are you-"_

 _The sentence was cut off and replaced by a gurgling gasp before the dark figure disappeared. The light grew with the sound of chains being ripped and old iron complaining._

 _"Iris?"_

 _By that one word from that voice, everything was suddenly clear to her, as if a heavy fog had been lifted from her._

 _She knew who and where she was, what had happened but most importantly - she knew who the voice belonged to._

 _"Nik!"_

 _Her voice came out as a painful raspy whisper and caused her lungs to start a fit of coughs._

 _Her eyes still stung from the light and it was hard to see anything as a figure neared her. It kneeled down in front of her._

 _"Bastards, what have they done to you?" The voice growled furiously as she felt soft fabric covering her naked, shivering body._

 _"It's really you Nik?" She asked hesitantly, squinting at the figure. She wanted it to be true, but was scared it was just another dream or hallucination. Warm hands cupped her face gently with a familiar feeling._

 _"It's really me, Iris." The voice confirmed softly, "I'm here to pick you up, sorry it took so long."_

 _Strong arms closed around her, pulling her in._

 _"I've got you."_

 _She let out a long breath of relief and for the first time in long, she was able to breathe freely without any pain._

 _Iris slowly became aware of the gentle continued strokes against her cheek and the warmth surrounding her. She heard the two steady heartbeats. The softness beneath and around her._

 _The comfortable silence, warmth and touch was soothing and Iris wanted nothing more than stay like that forever. The screams, pain and suffocating agony still stood strong in her memory, but that was now in the past. If she'd learned one thing in her long life, it was to never dwell on the past, but keep enjoying the now, while it was good. Iris knew the touch, she knew the warmth, the smell, sound of the other. The feeling of complete content, safety and peace. She didn't have to open her eyes to know who lay beside her._

 _A smile crossed her lips as she moved, snuggling closer to the other. Iris heard a small chuckle and felt the vibrations in the chest she leaned into._

 _"If you're finally awake, you should say so." The voice said amused as arms closed around her further._

 _"And ruin this perfect feeling?" She replied, keeping her eyes closed and not making any attempt to move, "I don't think so."_

 _"Well, as much as I do enjoy this, it's been three days and I'm getting rather hungry, to be honest."_

 _The words made Iris move a little and open her eyes to look up. Turquoise met deep blue with a questioning look._

 _"Three days?!" She exclaimed stunned, "Why haven't you eaten for three days?"_

 _He crooked a small smile, watching her for a moment before answering._

 _"I didn't wanna risk being out when you woke up. I wanted to be here when you did." He told her as if should have been obvious. Iris rolled her eyes._

 _"What am I, a child?" She asked with a small huff, "It's not the first time something like this happens to me."_

 _He cupped her face in her hands, making her look at him._

 _"I know love, however it's still okay for you to be scared and cry when something is painful. Remember I told you this before?" He assured her with a firm voice. Iris blinked a few times, then nodded as she felt her eyes watering. She broke their eye contact and buried her face in his chest as the tears started falling freely. When she started to shake, she felt his arms tighten around her. Grounding her and making feel safe in a way only he could. It was okay to cry. He had told her this multiple times over the years, however every time it was a freeing and comforting as it was when he first had told her this, when she was a girl of only 16 winters._

 _Iris had endured more than most people. She was a merciless and strong leader with thousands of people under her. She was feared and respected, even hated with a passion. She was a ruthless killer with hands soaked permanently in red. When she wanted something, she got it and everything or everyone standing in her way was discarded of without hesitation._

 _Only him._

 _Only he knew this side of her. Only with him could she let go of it all and be the fragile woman that needed her man. Only with him, allowed Iris herself to be vulnerable, even if it only was because he basically demanded her to be honest with herself when they were together like this._

 _His hands caressed her back in a continued soothing motion as she cried. He didn't say a word. It wasn't needed. Feeling him close to her had always been enough. Naked skin against naked skin kept her warm in the chilled room. The sound of their synced breaths and heartbeats calmed her as a lullaby lulling her back to sleep._

 _Iris had almost drifted back into peaceful oblivion when a sudden and loud explosion sounded from outside the window, shaking the room and everything inside it._

 _Iris jumped awake and sat up abruptly._

 _She looked around in the room as another explosion sounded, followed by screams and sirens. Klaus groaned annoyed and sat up next to her._

 _"What is happening?" Iris asked and looked at him bewildered, "What was that?"_

 _Klaus threw the covers aside and pulled on his pants, getting out of bed._

 _"Bloody war." He mumbled and walked to the window. Iris pulled the sheet around her naked form and followed him out of the bed._

 _"War?" She asked, feeling utterly confused, "What war?"_

 _Klaus didn't answer her but pulled the curtains aside for her to look outside. Iris gasped when she saw what was behind the dusty window. The skies were gray, as everything else seemed to be. The streets were filled with dust, stone and rumbles from surrounding ruins. Soldiers walked the street, scaring away any civil who dared to cross their path. In the distant, flames were alight and smoke rose up into the sky. She could hear desperate shouts and cries in that language._

 _"You didn't know?" Klaus asked her in a careful whisper. Iris covered her mouth and took a step back shaking her head._

 _"Didn't know what? What's going on? Where are we?"_

 _Klaus crooked his head and sighed resigned._

 _"We're in East Germany." He told her, "The world has been at war for three years already Iris."_

 _Iris gave him a surprised look, not understanding g what he was saying._

 _"What? The world? Another war?"_

 _Klaus nodded solemnly and pulled the curtains back, hiding the horrors of the outside world._

 _"What year...? How long has I been gone...?" She asked horrified at what she was learning. Klaus have her a sad smile and walked to her._

 _"It's 1943, love." He informed her._

 _"1943?" She repeated dumbfounded, "I've been in that place for six years...?" Klaus nodded and pulled her into an embrace._

 _"I'm sorry love." He whispered, "I had hoped to find you sooner, but somehow they had cloaked the facility. I had to find Anna first and have her help me find you."_

 _Iris nodded into the embrace._

 _"Makes sense." She said slowly, "The soldiers came armed with vervain and stakes. They knew what we were."_

 _Iris felt his arms tense around her._

 _"Mikael." He hissed angrily._

 _"Hand it to Mikael to convince the German chancellor to have a secret research facility using vampires as guineapigs." Iris said with a huff and buried her face in his chest, drowning out the noise from outside, "So this is what the chancellor has been up to while holding me captured and experimenting on me. War? I thought he was smarter than that."_

 _"He's human, Iris." Klaus reminded her, "A human hungry for power. Creatures like that doesn't think straight."_

 _"Humans call us monsters." Iris mumbled into his chest, "Raging war, killing millions for a selfish reason like gaining more power. If they had seen and knew what we had, they'd never consider something as inhuman as that. They'd be too broken to even consider getting into a fight with their neighbor."_

 _Klaus let out a small chuckle._

 _"Indeed." He mumbled holding her close._

 _They fell quiet for a long while as they stood in the room holding each other, with everything that went on in the world around. Letting it all happen._

 _When the siren, explosions and cries finally stopped, Iris let out a relived sigh and relaxed in his arms._

 _"So where is everyone else these years?" She asked and looked up at him slowly. Needing to change the subject. Klaus looked at her for a moment before answering._

 _"Finn, Kol and Rebekah lies daggered." He answered her as if it was most normal thing, "I don't know anything about Elijah. I haven't seen him since we separated in New Orleans in 1919."_

 _Iris crooked an eyebrow._

 _"So you're by yourself?" She asked with a hint of disbelieve, "That's unusual for you. Not even having Rebekah with you."_

 _"She wanted to leave me Iris." Klaus told her as if it explained it all, "She'd rather be with some guy she claimed to love, than with me, when we had to flee from Mikael. I had no choice."_

 _Iris raised a brow at him before she sighed and shook her head._

 _"Your logic is really twisted sometimes Nik." She said, "One day all this you're putting your siblings through will come right back at you. I hope you know they won't put up with it forever. You guys are my family and I love you more than anyone, but that dagger thing you have going on between you, I don't want to be a part of it - that's your thing." Iris finished and backed away._

 _She dropped the sheet and walked to the bedroom mirror, letting out a long sigh. She drove a pale hand over the damaged, red tuffs of hair on the top of her head. Her hand continued down her face, neck, chest and waist. Her entire body was covered in red, black, purple and yellow - ruined and scared from everything they had filled it with and exposed it to. Things that would, no doubt, leave permanent scars, even on an immortal vampire._

 _Iris had never been too concerned with her looks, having confidence in the power she held, however every now and then the woman in her surfaced with a wish of being the 'fairest of them all", at least in one man's eyes._

 _These scars, these imperfections were embarrassing. They were signs of weakness, of vulnerability and they reminded her that she wasn't unbeatable. Iris clenched her teeth in angry frustration and clutched her right bruised arm, feeling her eyes watering._

 _She looked into the mirror and suddenly saw the broken girl standing in front of her. Turquoise dull and lifeless. Skin sickly pale, almost see through, covered in dust, bruises, wounds and blood. Red hair a messy and beyond repair. Long limbs thin and fragile as if they would break from a simple touch._

 _Iris gasped and took a step back as the girl glared back at her. Then her eyes hardened as she glared back at the girl with hated before letting out a scream and slammed her hand into the mirror. Iris immediately felt strong arms embrace her from behind, holding her back and stopping her from giving the mirror another hit._

 _"It's okay Iris." The gentle whisper in her ear calmed her immediately, "I'm here and I'm not leaving anytime soon."_

 _"I hate it." She mumbled and hid her face in her hands, "Hate it. I hate being this weak, this fragile. Why can't I just…"_

 _Iris was turned on the spot, warm hands grapping on her shoulders, steadying her._

 _"Iris, look at me." He demanded in a stern voice, making her look up at him. She was met with gentle blue eyes looking back at her with a hint of worry._

 _"You're beautiful, okay?" Klaus told her seriously, "You're the most beautiful and the strongest woman I've ever met and that coming from me, you know that says something." He added and crooked an infectious grin, "In all the time we're known each other, nothing has changed that and nothing ever will. Not this, not anything." His hands moved from her shoulders to her face, "Alright?"_

 _Iris felt herself calm down, from his soothing touch. Her heart and breath slowing as she drew a shaky breath and gave him a small nod. Klaus gave her a small smile and kissed her forehead._

 _"Good." He whispered and moved in, capturing her lips with his._

 ** _30_** ** _th_** ** _of April 1945_**

 _The room in the Führerbunker was dark and the air moist. The only light came from the few table lamps on the desk and end table. The two people sat in silence. One by the desk, going through some papers and the other, in the sofa with some needlework. They didn't sense the intruder before they stood right in front of them._

 _"Well, isn't this just lovely?" Iris asked aloud, drawing the attention of the rooms habitants. The man behind the desk stood up immediately, papers forgotten as he stared at Iris eyes wide._

 _"You!" He said outraged pointing a finger at her, "How are you here?!"_

 _Iris crooked her head and took a step closer to the man._

 _"What? Surprised to see me out of the facility you so kindly put me in?" She asked with fake sweetness, "What did you expect, dealing with my kind?"_

 _"But, but he assured me…" the man stammered and stepped away from her, "With the herb, the stakes and the sunlight…"_

 _"All very effective to subdue and kill my kind I assure you. However," Iris grinned wickedly and leaned over the desk, never taking her off the man, "much like you, I too have powerful friends." As if on cue Klaus stepped out of the shadows, causing the one in the sofa to jump up in surprise._

 _"You've been dealing with things way beyond you and killed millions out of your own greed." Klaus said as he walked up beside Iris. The man huffed and crossed his arms giving the two vampires a defiant look._

 _"And now you've come bring me to justice, is that it?" He asked them, trying to hide his trembling nerves. Iris and Klaus exchanged a look, before Iris turned her attention back to the man._

 _"Oh no, you're already losing the war and we don't really like to be mixed up in the messy affairs of humans," She told him lightly with a small shrug, "This, this is personal. You made it personal when you captured and experimented on me and some of my people." Her voice was dangerously calm as she looked at him, eyes cold, "Seeing as you're losing, you'll probably be shot or otherwise killed by the Allies and I won't let that happen. I want to be the one to kill you, but first-"_

 _Iris pulled out a small brown bottle, from inside her jacket and held it up it the light for the others to see._

 _"Recognize this little thing?" She asked glancing at the man, "Taken in this form, it causes severe stomach- and headache, vomiting, dizziness, quickened heartbeat, difficulty in breathing, angst, loss of consciousness and ultimately death. All within a very short period of time." Iris informed and grinned gleefully, "It's highly uncomfortable, believe me, I've tried it."_

 _Without another word, she flashed to the woman by the sofa, graphed her jaw and forced her mouth open, before she poured the clear liquid down her throat. Covering the woman's mouth and nose with a hand, Iris made the woman drink the liquid, despite her struggling._

 _"That was for the ones you killed in that facility." Iris said calmly as she moved away from the moaning woman on the floor. Next thing, she'd graphed a gun from the desk drawer and held it, gun point, at the man._

 _"And this," Iris whispered, not taking her cold eyes from him, "This is for me…"_

 **(…)**

Klaus pulled back and stared at the woman in front of him, confused. She crooked her head in response.

"1943. The last time we met." She told him, answering his silent question, "From then on we spend the following 65 years together, searching for the moonstone and doppelganger, among other things." Iris added and blinked mischievously.

"Wait. _You_ killed Hitler?" He asked dumbfounded and pointed between the two of them, eyes wide in puzzlement. Iris crooked a brow and crossed her arms, shifting her position.

"I know you don't remember me or anything about the Black Panther, but really Nik, did that spell make you completely oblivious as well?" She asked with a huff, "What have you been doing for the past eight years? Did you fry your brain becoming a hybrid?"

Klaus growled angrily and in the next second Iris was once again pinned to the wall, with a hissing hybrid in front of her.

"Watch it, little vampire." Klaus snarled dangerously, eyes flashing yellow, "We may have had something in the past, however I don't remember anything about it and I certainly don't _feel_ anything for you. I could easily rip out your heart, without feeling any regret."

"Then why don't you?" She asked him immediately, giving him a challenging look, "You've killed for less, right? At least you used to."

Klaus clenched his teeth, feeling an uncontrollable anger rise inside him as the beast struggled to be released.

"What's wrong?" Iris asked, her voice sickingly sweet and she crooked her head and continued to watch him unfazed, "What did the blond do to you, making you this weak, to make you doubt yourself?" Her features changed from challenging to sad as she reached up and touched Klaus' face gently, "What happened to you? Is this what you're like when you don't remember me? So insecure, confined, frightened? So… lost and broken…?"

Klaus let out a shaky breath, feeling the warmth from her touch. He felt the beast inside him relax and pull back. Content.

 _Traitor._ He thought, feeling betrayed by that part of himself. Why did this woman affect him so much, that with just a simple touch, she was able to calm the wildest part of him. Klaus let out an annoyed growl and met the turquoise eyes once again.

She was dangerous, he told himself. Someone like her, with such power over him couldn't be allowed to live. No one could be that close and affect him like that. Not even Cami or his siblings. He had always made sure to keep a certain distance and he preferred it that way. Klaus dug out a new anger, fueled by self-perseveration. He pushed away the memories he had seen and what they had made him feel, before piercing the vampire's chest, graphing a hold on her warm, beating heart.

"You really do have a death wish, don't you?" The hybrid snarled between gritted teeth. The vampire let out a small groan as Klaus twisted his hand just a little. Then she did something which threw of Klaus completely. She crooked a smile.

"I'm not afraid of dying. I've faced death in so many ways, so many times, that He and I have become old mates." Iris told him honestly, keeping her eyes locked with his, "No, I don't mind dying. Besides, the thought of you never remembering me again, never remembering what we had, scares me to the point that I'd rather be dead. So if that's how it's going to be, then go ahead and kill me. I'd rather it was you than some random douchebag." She added and graphed the hand that was buried in her chest. Iris closed her fingers around his hand. Klaus's eyes widened in slight horror, as she began to pull a little in his hand firmly closed around her heart.

Was she serious? Did she really want him to just pull it out and kill her?

Klaus clenched his teeth and felt involuntary tears in the corner of his eyes, as she continued to pull at his hand, never flinching or taking her eyes from him. The hybrid felt an unfamiliar panic rise inside him. Heart beating faster and adrenaline pumping through his body. Two voices were screaming at him in his mind, screaming so loud that he could make out a single word.

He was frozen in place, as he could only watch, only feel, his bloody arm slowly emerging from her pierced chest.

Klaus suddenly heard the elevator in the hallway, signalling someone arrive.

This seemed to break whatever spell he was caught in, as he immediately released his grip on the heart and pulled his hand to himself.

Iris looked away from him as well, letting out a sigh of relief and looked at the door.

"Well, it seems your rescue team is finally here." She said with a shaky breath, putting on a smile before she headed for the door. Klaus felt an impulse to reach out, graph her arm and pull her back to him. A part of him not ready to let her go, but he didn't.

Iris opened the door, revealing Cami on the other side.

"Camille O'Conner and Hayley Kenner, Nik is free and ready for you to bring home." She said and stepped aside.

"Klaus!" Cami exclaimed and rushed to the hybrid, pulling him into an embrace, "Thank god you're alright! I was really worried!"

Klaus blinked, still somewhat confused about everything that was going on and with dozens of questions popping up in his mind. His body reacted on it's own as Klaus returned Cami's hug and told her he was okay. His body moved and his mouth spoke the words, but his heart wasn't in it.

It couldn't be.

In his long life he couldn't remember ever being this confused over anything. The things she had told him, the memories she had showed him and what he himself knew to be true, it didn't add up. Klaus soon realized Cami was calling him, so he snapped out of whatever daze he was in and looked down at her. Her blue eyes shone up at him with slight concern and he gave her a smile, telling her it was okay and caressed her cheek.

"Let's leave this place, shall we?" Klaus said and glanced at Hayley, exchanging a small nod with her.

"Right, the other's must be worried about you by now." Iris said hesitantly and took a step closer to him, "but before you go-"

Iris graphed Klaus by the collar and pulled him in, they lips clashing. Before he knew it, Klaus was responding to the kiss, pulling Iris closer, running his fingers through her hair, as he felt hers loosening their grip on his collar and lightly caressing chest and neck. Klaus felt shivers running through him in a way he didn't remember having experienced before.

A part of him screamed to push the woman away, to rip out her heart, finishing what he had been doing earlier, besides, Cami was watching. There was something between them and this would hurt her, no doubt. Klaus ignored it all. He didn't care about. All he cared about was how it felt being so close to this woman, like this. How she, from the moment her saw her, seemed to have something about her, something familiar and secure, that the hybrid couldn't pinpoint. It was frustrating and thrilling at the same time. The words, the memories. Klaus found himself getting lost in her. Her taste, her smell, her touch, until she cruelly broke the kiss.

"I really hope you'll remember at some point." She whispered and locked eyes with him as she pulled away a few inches, "But in case you don't," she paused for a moment, taking in a deep shaking breath as if the words she spoke, hurt her, "If you don't, I hope that at least a part of you will know that we're someone out there who is looking out for you. Not because you were our sire, but because we genuinely care and worry about you. I hope you'll know that there is at least one person, who loves you more than anything, has done so for the past nine centuries and always will. Forever and beyond."

Klaus gasped, realizing now that he had stopped breathing for a moment, as the woman in front of him had spoken. He had been so lost in her eyes, her words that he had forgotten everything around him. Time and place had been lost to him. It was just now that he realized the tears escaping turquoise eyes and he found he wanted nothing more than to reach out and dry them away.

Forever and beyond.

Those words had struck something in him.

A promise, much like 'Always and forever', but yet so different.

'Always and forever' had been broken on several occasions and had lost its meaning. It had become nothing but hollow words between three people, broken past any repair.

'Forever and beyond' hadn't. Klaus had no idea what it meant, but he did know this; It was a promise much deeper and a meaning so much more, than the relations between siblings.

"You..." He whispered, wanting, needing to say something. Feeling a need to give her some sort of reassurance and comfort, but he had no idea what or how. Iris gave him a sad smile and a small nod.

"Goodbye Nik." With the last whisper she was gone.

 **(…)**

Iris pulled on her black jacket, shielding herself against the chill evening and spotted the car waiting for her. She stepped across the street and smiled as the two heretics pushed off the car, getting ready for the drive.

"I saw him come out of the building with that blond," Anna said softly, "Are you really okay?"

Iris looked up at the brown haired woman, one of her oldest friends and strongest allies. They'd been fighting alongside each other for eight centuries and she was probably one of the people who was best at reading Iris. Iris sighed. It would be a futile attempt to hide anything from her.

"I think the spell has become permanent." Iris said with a sigh and leaned against the car, "Normally it only takes a minute or two for him to remember. He didn't remember at all this time." She shook her head and opened the car door, "It hurt Anna. It hurts more than anything I've experienced before," Iris admitted holding back fresh tears, "but he's safe and happy, that's what counts." She looked up at her friend with a serious look in her eyes, "That's all that matters."

They all got into the car and soon after Iris started the car.

"Did you talk to Claire and Griffith?" She asked her two companions. Anna and Kai exchanged a grin before they both nodded.

"Griffith was hesitant, as expected, but the young Claire witch seemed intrigued, especially when we told her we could help with what is going on with Kol."

Iris tightened her grip around the steering wheel and gritted her teeth in anger. She remembered the moment between her and Klaus, with his hand in her chest. She didn't know how, since both Klaus and herself were protected from the ancestor's magic, but somehow the blasted spirits had managed to meddle their way into that conversation. She had felt them. Iris was pretty sure that if Hayley and Cami hadn't turned up at that point, Klaus would have killed her. It was dangerous being with him here, where the ancestors had such strong manifestation. First Mikael and now this. 900 years and they still couldn't seem to catch a breath. Being in love with the most powerful man had never been easy.

"The ancestors got some nerve." She hissed keeping her eyes looking straight ahead, "Messing with Kol and Nik, besides helping Lucien. I don't care if Claire and Griffith is with us or not. These damn ghosts needs to be taught a lesson in not messing with the Mikaelsons. Call the covens and have them all dig through all the oldest and darkest grimoires. This is war."

Anna and Kai crooked an identical smirk.

"Yes ma'am." Anna said with a short nod, "What about that other thing? The one we came here about in the first place?" She asked, suddenly remembering their reason to plan a trip to New Orleans in the first place. Iris glanced at Anna shortly.

"It has to wait. This is more urgent." She said and turned a corner.

"Besides, I left a little message for our old friend Lucien, so we can expect his visit soon enough."

"Alright." Anna said with a hint of sarcasm, "First kill Lucien, then teach the ancestors a lesson and then we'll deal with the impending vampire apocalypse."

Iris nodded.

"It's all about the priorities." She said with a small shrug, "It's really about what you can and can't do something about. We can't do much about the 'vampire apocalypse' as you so nicely put it, before we know more about it and we already have most of our people working on that. It needs more tests, more observation and more time - you know the drill."

"But shouldn't Nik at least know, how the break of his sire bond is affecting the vampires in the line?" Anna asked side glancing at Iris, "I imagine there's quite a few very young vampires that he know off, maybe even in this city, we don't know when or how they'll be affected and start the change."

"Well, we do know how it starts and that the newest vampires are affected first." Iris reminded her friend, "But let us deal with one problem at the time, shall we? Nik and the Mikaelsons has enough on their plate as it is already. If possible, I'd like to spare them from anything about this altogether."

"That's not possible Iris and you know that." Anna pointed out sternly. Iris sighed and looked up at the road straight ahead for her, a distant look in her eyes.

"Yeah, I know." She mumbled regrettably.

* * *

 **A/N:** That concludes chapter three folks! And a long chapter at that too... sorry :S

Flashback!

So, you got a little insight in Iris and Klaus' relationship and past together, what did you think?

And if you were in doubt; yes, it was World War 2 and Adolph Hitler, which were referred to. According to history, Hitler and his Frau committed suicide on that day, the 30th of April 1945, but did they really or was it all set up by a couple of vengeful vampires...? This is one of the reasons I love writing stories with old vampires - history mysteries... ;P

Wait, just what did Anna mean when she said 'vampire apocalypse'? 0_0'

What IS UP with the meddlesome ancestors? Poor Iris...?

Are just as confused as Klaus at this point?

Next chapter: So Klaus doesn't remember Iris or the Black Panther, but what about Elijah and Kol, will they remember?

Well then, stay tuned for the next chapter! ;)


End file.
